The recent popularity of e-cigarettes is far from shocking, thanks to the twentieth century’s superb job at admonishing the harmful effects of tobacco smoke in all its glorious forms.
For those who are unfamiliar with e-cigs (consider vacating yourself from beneath that cozy rock you’ve come to know and love), they are battery-powered devices that, using a heating element called an atomizer, produce a smoke-like vapor. In essence, they mimic the experience of cigarette smoking without the smoke itself, thus (in theory) removing any potential health issues. In the words of Frank Underwood, “It’s addiction without the consequences.”
Via: politico.com
However, San Diego physician Dr. Laura Crotty Alexander recently brought forth some unsettling news regarding e-cigs: In the presence of e-cig vapor, methicillin resistant staphylococcus aureas (MRSA) is more resistant to the natural anti-microbial agents that the body makes (our “natural antibiotics”). And although traditional cigarette smoke does the same, this breakthrough calls into question just how much healthier the e-cig is compared to its angry and indulgent stepfather, the cigarette.
To understand the implications of this finding, you need to understand a bit about the human body’s physiology. Our immune systems rely on colonies of bacteria to fight off harmful pathogens. There is a precise balance between helpful and potentially harmful bacteria; a disruption of this balance causes the “bad” bacteria to multiply, ultimately becoming virulent. So, although a large portion of the population already has MRSA living inside them, the would-be pathogen only becomes a problem when something external sets it off.
Via: sarawakhospicesociety.org
MRSA, the antibiotic-resistant superbug, is found in the nasopharynx region (where the nasal passage connects to the throat). This area is a melting pot for all sorts of bacteria because of its connection to both the inside of the body and the outside world.
What Alexander and her colleagues found is that when a person takes a drag of an e-cig, the MRSA bacteria produces a hefty amount of biofilm, a sticky substance that acts as a protector against things like antibiotics and antimicrobial peptides (our body’s “natural antibiotics”). Thus, the stress of the vapor causes the MRSA bacteria to actually fight back, effectively activating resistance mechanisms.
When the MRSA bacteria becomes resistant is when the shit hits the fan and it invades other parts of the body, potentially infecting the bloodstream, bones, heart, lungs and bladder.
Via: american kabuki
Are you confused? Think of the MRSA bacteria as a fat, bedridden, teenaged serial killer with lofty aspirations to massacre a bunch of innocent people. He just lies there, day after day, dreaming of destruction and desolation, but his fat thighs keep him from ever taking action. He is awkward and angry, but remains harmless.
Then, one day, his mom hires him a personal trainer (e-cig vapor). Very gradually he embarks on an exercise regime that strips the flesh from his ample thighs until he can run a 5k without stopping. He is finally athletic enough to embark on his killing spree so he proceeds to shoot up a Justin Bieber concert.
Although the e-cig situation is not a murderous one, MRSA has already caused more U.S. deaths than AIDS.
Just something to think about next time you pat yourself on the back for quitting cigarettes while reaching for your e-cig.
Featured photo courtesy of: digitaltrends.com
